The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) division of the American Library Association defines information literacy as "a set of abilities requiring individuals to recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information."
Briefly, there are five standards: know, access, evaluate, use, and ethical/legal. Each of these standards is described in detail at their website with performance indicators and outcomes and practical examples.
SAILS stands for Standard Assessment of Information Literacy Skills. It was created by Kent State through a multi-year IMLS Grant and is used by over 80 members of the ACRL. SAILS is a standardized online assessment tool that tests students in 8 information literacy skill areas. This web-based tool allows librarians, in collaboration with faculty, to document information literacy skill levels for groups of students and to pinpoint areas for improvement.
Test questions are based on ACRL Information Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. The test consists of 45 questions from a randomly generated list of over 250 questions. The test takes approximately 30-40 minutes to complete. Answers are collected; scores and reports can be generated by class, department, or school.
The information in this guide is based on information in a series of presentations and documents associated with an Information Literacy Workshop presented by the ULS Information Literacy and Assessment Working Group.
The information in this guide is based on information in a series of presentations and documents associated with an Information Literacy Workshop presented by the ULS Information Literacy and Assessment Working Group.
This research guide was assembled with the assistance of Eleanor Gehman, MLIS Graduate Student, Hillman Library, University of Pittsburgh 2011-12.
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Bibliographic Instruction |
Information Literacy |
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Responsibility/Control
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Librarian-controlled |
Collaborative responsibility |
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Relation to curriculum
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External/tangential |
Integral |
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Placement in curriculum |
Isolated learning episodes (one-shot, workshop, unlinked credit courses) |
Pervasive throughout the curriculum, linked credit courses, competency requirements |
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Content focus |
Tools, search interfaces |
Overarching concepts, critical thinking processes, thinking standards |
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Teaching methods |
Librarian control/didactic approaches |
Construction of learning environments; librarian and faculty act as guides, facilitators |
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Learning transfer |
Limited (except skills) |
Increased due to multiple learning opportunities, internal motivation, deeper grasp of concepts |
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Assessment |
Focus on limited evaluations, skill-based measurements |
Focus on competencies, standards as yardstick for outcomes based approaches |
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Relationship to place |
Focus on specific libraries |
Focus on unbounded universe of information |
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Role of technology |
Limited, used in relatively inflexible ways |
Expanded role, variety of technologies selected to match instructional situations (“technology as a lever”) |
Created by Craig Gibson, Associate University Librarian for Public Services at George Mason University, and Karen Williams, Digital Library Initiatives Team Leader, University of Arizona for the Immersion Program at ACRL/Institute for Information Literacy and Copyright held by ALA.
